25 May 2023 , 20:54
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This country owes a debt of thanks to the millions of migrants who have made their home here.
We are richer, economically and culturally, thanks to immigration but we should recognise concern about the strength of our borders.
The latest figures show the Conservatives have lost control of the immigration system.
Despite Tory promises to cut the number coming here, net migration has reached a record high as has the backlog for processing asylum claims.
The Government is increasingly reliant on overseas labour because it has failed to invest in skills and training.
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There was another set of figures published yesterday: it showed that there are 770,000 16-24 year-olds who are not in education, employment or training.
The scandal is not the number of people seeking to live and work in Britain, it is the Government’s dire failure to create a high-skilled, high-paid workforce.
PM’s betrayal
At the last election the Conservatives promised to tighten the laws to protect animals from cruelty and suffering.
That pledge was repeated by Rishi Sunak when he ran for the Conservative leadership.
Yesterday the Tories reneged on their word by ditching the Kept Animals Bill.
This would have clamped down on puppy smuggling and dog theft, banned the export of live animals for slaughter and outlawed the keeping of monkeys as pets.
By abandoning the Bill, the PM has betrayed his own MPs, he has betrayed the public and he has betrayed animals.
Esther’s fight
Fifty years ago today the first episode of That’s Life was broadcast on the BBC.
Over the next 21 years Esther Rantzen and her team fought for the underdog, while making sure they had a laugh on the way.
She has lost none of her fighting spirit or sense of humour as she lives with cancer.
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